Phaedo

by Plato, David Gallop

Overview

The Phaedo is acknowledged to be one of Plato's masterpieces, showing him both as a philosopher and as a dramatist at the height of his powers. For its moving account of the execution of Socrates, the Phaedo ranks among the supreme literary achievements of antiquity. It is also a document crucial to the understanding of many ideas deeply ingrained in western culture, and provides one of the best introductions to Plato's thought. This new edition is eminently suitable for readers new to Plato, offering a readable translation which is accessible without the aid of a commentary and assumes no prior knowledge of the ancient Greek world or language.

About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780199538935
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	04/15/2009
Series:	Oxford World's Classics Series
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	655,918
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.60(h) x 0.30(d)

About the Author

Eva Brann is a tutor and member of the senior faculty at St. John's College, Annapolis, where she has also been dean of academic affairs. She holds an M.A. in Classics and a Ph.D. in Archaeology from Yale University. Her recent books include "The Ways of Naysaying; What, Then, Is Time?" and "The World of the Imagination." She has co-authored several translations with Focus Publishing.

Peter Kalkavage is a Tutor at St. John's College, Annapolis.

Eric Salem is a Tutor at St. Johns College, Annapolis.

Table of Contents

	Preface	ix
	List of Abbreviations	x
	Introduction
I	The purpose of the dialogue and its position in the Platonic writings	3
II	Stylometric arguments. The transcendent forms	8
III	The nature of the soul	11
IV	The characters	12
V	The arguments for the immortality of the soul	16
VI	Arguments for immortality in other dialogues	19
	Translation and Commentary
I	57A-59C: Introductory conversation	27
II	59C-62C: Socrates as poet. The wickedness of suicide	32
III	62C-64C: The philosopher's readiness to die	39
IV	64C-67B: The philosopher's detachment from the body	44
V	67B-69E: Moral virtue, genuine and spurious	52
VI	69E-72D: The first argument for immortality. The cycle of opposites	58
VII	72E-77A: A complementary argument. The theory of recollection	66
VIII	77A-78B: Combined results of the two preceding arguments. Socrates as charmer	78
IX	78B-80C: Third argument. The kinship of souls and forms	81
X	80C-82D: The after-life of unpurified souls	87
XI	82D-85B: Socrates describes the philosopher's progress and declares his swan-song to be a song of joy	92
XII	85B-88B: Simmias and Cebes explain their doubts	97
XIII	88C-91C: Interlude. A warning against 'misology'	105
XIV	91C-95A: Refutation of Simmias's theory of soul	112
XV	95A-99D: Socrates as student of natural science	121
XVI	99D-102A: The new method of hypothesis	133
XVII	102A-105B: The exclusion of opposites	147
XVIII	105B-107B: The argument concluded. Soul is both deathless and indestructible	158
XIX	107C-110B: Myth of the after-life	167
XX	110B-112E: The splendour of the true earth. The rivers of the underworld	176
XXI	112E-115A: The myth concluded. Its truth and value	182
XXII	115B-118: The last scene	187
	Additional Notes	191
	The Criticisms of Strato	195
	Index of Names	199

Editorial Reviews

"Very usable source. I like the professional inclusion o introduction, notes, bibliography and clear Stephans numbering. All contribute to introducing students to a scholarly text. Book opens easily for ease in reading. I will consider it for future courses."—Dr. Madonna R. Adams, Pace University

"Gallop's translation, notes, and introduction to Plato's Phaedo shows first rate literary, philosophical and historical competence."—Professor John J. Glanville, San Francisco State University

"Very fine volume. I appreciate the full Stephanus notation as well as the ample index."—Germain Kopaczynski, St. Hyacinth Clg. & Sem.

"So glad you included the Stephanus numbers. Notes are helpfu. Look forward to complete Oxford Plato."—Professor Eva AH. Cadwallader, Westminster College

"Explanatory notes are very useful for students without a great deal of background in Greek history or philosophy."—Dr. mark Berber, Saint Mary's College

From the Publisher